GPG key generation: Not enough random bytes available.

Not enough random bytes available

Generating keys with GnuPG

Anyone who wants to create a new key set via GnuPG (GPG) may run into this error:

We need to generate a lot of random bytes. It is a good idea to perform
some other action (type on the keyboard, move the mouse, utilize the
disks) during the prime generation; this gives the random number
generator a better chance to gain enough entropy.
Not enough random bytes available. Please do some other work to give
the OS a chance to collect more entropy! (Need 142 more bytes)

The problem is caused by the lack of entropy (or random system noise). While trying to get more, you might keep running into this message. In our case running a find on the disk, while making sha1sums and putting that into files, was actually not enough.

To check the available entropy, check the kernel parameters:

cat /proc/sys/kernel/random/entropy_avail
36

To solve the lack of entropy, we can use a random number generator utility like the rngd command

Linux and UNIX security automation

Lynis is a free and open source security scanner. It helps with testing the defenses of your Linux, macOS, and Unix systems. Typical use-cases for this software include system hardening, vulnerability scanning, and checking compliance with security standards (PCI-DSS, ISO27001, etc).